Cherry blossom hell
by fated blondie
Summary: Sakura had just graduated the academy and had almost everything going for her. She proved to her team she was stronger than anyone ever thought. But life isn't always fair. Ino hates her, and Orochimaru wants her on his side. Rated T for obvious reasons.
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys!! Got a brand new story out! This one's been kicking around in an old notebook for like a year now. Never got around to typing it up.

Hope you all like it! Not sure about the couple yet, but that won't start up for another 9-10 chapters so I'm not worrying about it now. I'm thinking either NarutoXSakura or KakashiXSakura. Most likely Naruto, only because I have another story being written that is A kakashi Sakura pairing.

Well, enough rambling, ENJOYYYYYYY! ^-^

I do NOT own Naruto! That goes to Kishimoto-san.

* * *

"_Dear diary, I finally made it! I graduated from the ninja academy today. And guess what? Sasuke-kun is one of the people_ _on my team! The other is that obnoxious kid, Naruto. But who cares about him, I have Sasuke-kun and not Ino-pig. The look on her face was priceless. She was so mad. And... Oh! I almost forgot. Some guy tripped Naruto and when he fell, he kissed Sasuke! It was so disgusting. Me and just about every other girl there was ready to kill Naruto, even though it wasn't really his fault. Our sensei, the famous copy ninja, Hatake Kakashi, seems okay. He doesn't seem to like us all that much. It's probably because of Naruto-baka. He did that stupid eraser on top of the door trick. And whats sad is that it worked. Some jounin sensei is... Well, that's all for now!"_

Eleven year old Haruno Sakura happily shut her diary, put it away in the drawer of her desk, and hopped into her bed. She giggled quietly to her self before closing her eyes and drifting off into a peaceful sleep. In the morning, she woke up and took a nice, hot shower and dressed in her usual red dress with a white circle on the back and black shorts. She brushed out her slightly damp hair and placed her brand new hitai-ate in her hair like a headband. She took her time going downstairs.

"Ohayo Sakura-chan." She heard her mother greet as she entered the kitchen.

"Ohayo." Sakura sat down next to her father and helped herself to some eggs and toast.

"Sakura, your sensei came over and asked me to let you know that practice has been changed. Instead of eleven, he wants you there at nine sharp." Her dad said from behind the paper. Sakura glanced at the clock. Her eyes widened.

"I have to go! Bye mom, bye dad!" She yelled, already half way out the door. She managed to throw on her sandals and strap her weapons pouch to her thigh and get to the training grounds right on time. And yet somehow she was the first one there. She decided on sitting down and waiting for everyone else to arrive.

"Oi! Sakura-chaaaaan!" She heard Naruto yell from across the bridge. Irritated, Sakura punched Naruto in the head.

"Ow... What was that for?" He whined.

"For annoying me. Oh, Hi Sasuke-kun! How are you?" Sakura asked, her mood doing a complete 360.

"Fine." He said coldly.

"Do you want to go get something to eat after training?"

"No. Now please shut up. You're extremely annoying." He said and crossed his arms.

"I'll go out with you, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said energetically. Sakura glared at him

"No. I don't like you like that. I like Sasuke-kun!" She said firmly and latched herself onto Sasuke's arm, but he pushed her away.

"Get off me. Do not think that just because we are on the same team, we immediately become best friends." He said roughly. Naruto was about to say something when Kakashi appeared.

"You're late!" Naruto and Sakura exclaimed at the same time. Kakashi just scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry. Black cat crossed my path."

"Save it. Can we just get to training?" Sasuke said in his usual, bored tone.

"Yes. Today I'm going to test your battle skills. Each of you will fight me in a one-on-one match. After we are finished, we'll call it a day Any questions? Good. Let's start with Naruto." Naruto thrust a fist into the air.

"Sweet! No holding back now sensei. I'm going to beat you to a pulp! Believe it!" Naruto ran at Kakashi and went to punch him but Kakashi disappeared. Naruto glanced around. Kakashi reappeared behind Naruto. Kakashi slammed Naruto into the ground with a simple kick of his foot. Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Kage bunshin? When did you do that?" Kakashi asked. Naruto flew out of one of the surrounding trees and tried to kick Kakashi but her grabbed his foot and flung him at the ground. Naruto struggled to get up but found he couldn't. "You said not to go easy on you." Kakashi said lightly as he picked Naruto up and set him down by the other two.

_'Who next. I suppose Sasuke. Sakura doesn't look like she'll be much of a challenge. Save her for last.'_

"Sasuke, you're up." Sasuke mumbled a response and walked out towards Kakashi. Sasuke got into a fighting stance and waited for Kakashi to make the first move. Kakashi swiftly took out a kunai and rushed at Sasuke. Sasuke blocked the kunai with his own. The two exchanged multiple kicks and punches before Sasuke jumped back and performed a string of hand signs.

" Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu!" Immediately, A large ball of flame erupted from Sasuke' mouth and headed straight for A wide-eyed Kakashi. He was able to dodge the first one but was hit in the chest by the ball of flame behind it. Sasuke smirked, but it dropped to a frown when he watched Kakashi disappear in a cloud of smoke.

"Shit." Sasuke pulled out a kunai and tuned in to his surroundings.

"You're good Sasuke, but I'm afraid you aren't good enough." Kakashi's voice called from out of nowhere. Sasuke's head whipped around to try and find the source. He jumped up just in time to see Kakashi's hand thrust up from the ground to make a grab at Sasuke's ankle. Sasuke smirked and threw his Kunai at the newly revealed Kakashi. Kakashi caught it and flung it right back at Sasuke. Sasuke managed to dodge it.

"Lets end this, shall we?" Kakashi asked playfully. Before Sasuke could even blink, He found himself pinned to the ground with a kunai pressed to his throat. "You're finished." Kakashi stated, and stood up. Sasuke grumbled and also stood up, brushing the dust off his front. He stalked off to the side where Naruto and A grinning Sakura stood.

"Good job Sasuke-kun!"

"Hn." Was his response as he brushed past Sakura and sat down against a tree.

"Sakura! You're up!" Kakashi called out from the middle of the field.

"_**Cha! Let's show Kakashi-sensei and these idiots what we can do!" **_

_'Hell yeah!' _Sakura calmly walked out to the field and faced her sensei. Sakura did two back flips to avoid a shower of shuriken Kakashi sent after her. Landing on her feet, she ran towards Kakashi and started throwing a barrage of punches and kicks at him. He blocked them all and punched her in the stomach. Sakura went flying back and skidded along the ground. When she didn't get up, Kakashi assumed she was done.

"Sakura! I knew I wasn't going to...huh?" Sakura had gotten up and had punched the ground with a chakra-laced fist. Stunned, he jumped up just in time to see the ground collapse below him. She appeared behind him and landed a kick that sent him flying into a tree.

"I-I-I didn't realize she was that strong!!" Naruto stuttered. He had a look of absolute shock. Sasuke could only nod. Kakashi pulled himself from the tree and threw exploding tags at Sakura but she just dodged them and ran at him. She built up chakra in her fist and tried to punch him but he managed to dodge all of the strong punches. He grabbed her arm and flung her in the opposite direction.

_'Shit. I'm almost out of chakra! I need to finish this.' _She thought as she slid against the ground and landed in a heap at the base of a tree. Sakura shakily stood up and pulled the tree out of the ground and launched it at Kakashi. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the inventive weapon as he dodged it. Kakashi swiftly ran at Sakura and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"Wha-" Sakura didn't get to finish as she slumped into Kakashi's arms, unconscious. He had hit her pressure-point. He lifted her into his arms and carried her over to where a shocked Sasuke and Naruto were standing.

"Did either of you know she was this strong?"

"No. She never showed any signs of having insane strength and excellent chakra control." Sasuke replied, eying the girl as they walked away from the training grounds and towards Sakura's house.

"Well, she was definitely holding back. Maybe she did it so that she wouldn't get any attention." Kakashi stated.

"Poor Sakura-chan, She's so strong she feels weak."

meanwhile.....

"So what do you think? Will she work?" Two men were hiding up in the trees, watching team seven leave. The man who spoke adjusted his glasses as he turned to look at his master.

"Yes, she will be perfect. She is exactly what I need." Said master spoke, pure evil lacing his words.

"Okay, but isn't she a little young?"

"Yes, but the younger ones are always the easiest to break. She will be mine in no time. We retrieve her tomorrow. They are having a festival so it should be fun to take her then." The master said, a deep chuckle following the statement. The other man with the glasses nodded his head.

"Hai, Orochimaru."

* * *

Jutsu list!

Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu( Fire release:Grand fireball technique) - A large ball of flame exhaled from the users mouth.

Kage bunshin no jutsu( Shadow clone technique) - creates a clone of the user.

Hope you all liked it! This story will most likely be updated fairly quickly because it's already written down.

Until next time!

-fated blondie-


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright, chapter 2!! I realize that this chapter is extremely short. When I first started writing, I made chapters short. **

**But as the story progresses, the chapters will get much longer. I promise!!!!**

**Enjoy! ^-^**

_

* * *

_

_recap_

_"So what do you think? Will she work?" Two men were hiding up in the trees, watching team seven leave. The man who spoke adjusted his glasses as he turned to look at his master._

_"Yes, she will be perfect. She is exactly what I need." Said master spoke, pure evil lacing his words._

_"Okay, but isn't she a little young?" _

_"Yes, but the younger ones are always the easiest to break. She will be mine in no time. We retrieve her tomorrow. They are having a festival so it should be fun to take her then." The master said, a deep chuckle following the statement. The other man with the glasses nodded his head._

_"Hai, Orochimaru." _

_

* * *

_

When the group arrived at Sakuras house, They handed her over to her father who turned and left to lay her down.

"It's to be expected. She is, after all, a kunoichi now." She said softly.

"And a formidable one at that. Now, when she wakes up, could you please tell her that we have a meeting tonight at 8pm on the bridge. It's important." Sakuras mom nodded and closed the door. Kakashi nodded to the two boys and disappeared in a flurry of leaves.

"Cool!I wonder if it's gonna be some kick ass mission!" Naruto yelled happily.

"Baka." Sasuke began to walk away.

"Wait up! You wanna go get some ramen?"

"No." He said stoically and continued down the street.

"Fine, I'll go on my own." He pouted, and ran off in the other direction towards the ramen stand. When Sakura woke up, it was 7:30. Surprised, she made her way downstairs to try and find her parents. She found her mom making dinner and her father in the living room reading watching television.

"Ah, you're finally awake. I was beginning to wonder if you were even going to wake up. Your sensei told me to tell you that there is a meeting at eight on the red bridge. He said it was important." Her dad said as she peeked in.

"Alright, Thanks dad! I should probably get going now. We'll probably go out for dinner afterwards, knowing Naruto..." She raced up the stairs to her room and quickly changed into a pair of sweatpants and a tank top. She ran a brush through her thick pink hair and ran back downstairs. Sakura put her shoes on and walked out the door, shutting it with a soft click.

She found Naruto and Sasuke already at the bridge.

"Sakura-chan! You're okay now, right? Kaka-sensei had to knock you out before you killed him. You're really strong, ya know. Even Sasuke-teme was surprised." She stood there for a minute, thinking back to what had transpired earlier.

"R-really? I didn't think I did that well. You think I did well Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn. I'll admit you got sensei pretty good, but you're still weak. To me, you will always be weak." Sakura looked down at the ground and stared at her feet. To say she was angry would be an understatement. Suddenly, Sakura stood up straight. Inserting a bit of chakra into her fist, Sakura walked up to Sasuke and punched him in the face.

"Sorry Sasuke-kun!" She called out sarcastically. Kakashi chose that exact moment to appear.

"Y-" He was suddenly distracted as Sasuke flew past him and skidded along the ground and ended in a slump against a tree."-o..." Kakashi finished lamely. He glanced over at the remaining two to see who had done it. To his surprise, he saw Sakura standing there, fist still raised and Naruto holding her at the waist to keep her from killing Sasuke. He glanced back over at Sasuke who was trying to stand up.

'She broke it!' Sasuke thought, touching his jaw tenderly. He stalked back over to his team and stood on the other side of Naruto. Scratching the back of his head, Kakashi let out a long sigh.

"Okayyyy. Well, as you know, tomorrow is the festival so there won't be any training. But Tsunade-sama wants you three and the other genin to compete in the festivities tomorrow. There is a 25 mile marathon race, team scavenger hunt, a food eating contest, and a test of intelligence. At the end will be a ceremony to announce the winners. I want you three to be at the bridge at nine. The festivities begin at exactly ten so we have an hour to prepare for everything. We will discuss everything tomorrow. That's it! Dismissed!" Sasuke immediately started walking away.

**"He's probably on his way to the hospital!" **Sakura heard her Inner say, laughing maniacally. Sakura inwardly sweatdropped.

_'Well, he deserved it. I shouldn't have hit him that hard though...'_

**_"Don't! You had every reason to break that bastards jaw. Maybe now he can act civilly around you..."_**

_'We'll see.' _Sakura was brought out of her Inner conversation by a yelling Naruto.

"Sakura-chan? Do you want to go get some ramen with me? My treat!" She thought about it for a moment.

"Sure, why not. I haven't had dinner yet." Naruto, who was expecting a rejection, gave a huge grin and jumped up and down.

"Really?! Great! Do you want to come too sensei? You'll have to pay for yourself though..." Naruto said ad they started walking away from the bridge.

"Alight."

"You know, He's gonna leave you with the bill..." Sakura said quietly so that Kakashi didn't hear her.

"I know." Sure enough, Naruto ended up paying for the three of them. She bid goodnight to Naruto and walked home. Once she got home, Sakura brushed her teeth andchanged into a pair of pajamas. Sakura crawled into bed and stared up at her dark ceiling, running everything that happened that day through her head. Eventually, Sakura closed her eyes, knowing she would need lots of energy for tomorrow.

_'Tomorrow's going to be fun!' _Was Sakuras last thought before drifting off to a dreamland full of possibilities for tomorrow.

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**I hope you all liked it, despite it being short. I actually started adding random things as I was checking it over, but whatever. At least it's here. haha**

**Next chapter shall be out soon!!**

**Until then,**

**-fated blondie-**


	3. Chapter 3

**Late, I know... But hey, at least it's up! I made them longer, so everyone is happy.  
**

**Enjoy!**

**Ah, and I don't own Naruto... Unfortunate, but true.  
**

* * *

_recap_

"_Really?! Great! Do you want to come too sensei? You'll have to pay for yourself though..." Naruto said ad they started walking away from the bridge._

"_Alight."_

"_You know, He's gonna leave you with the bill..." Sakura said quietly so that Kakashi didn't hear her._

"_I know." Sure enough, Naruto ended up paying for the three of them. She bid goodnight to Naruto and walked home. Once she got home, Sakura brushed her teeth, changed into a pair of pajamas, and immediately went to bed._

_'Tomorrow's going to be fun!'_

_

* * *

  
_

Waking up at eight, Sakura took a quick shower and dressed in her usual red dress with the black spandex shorts underneath. She walked over to her mirror and brushed out her long pink hair. She carefully placed her hitai-ate in her hair like a head band and tied it up in the back. Checking the clock, she realized she had ten minutes to eat breakfast and get to the bridge.

Sakura grabbed her weapons pouch and raced down the stairs. She made herself a bowl of cereal and ate it faster than Naruto can eat ramen. She grabbed an apple to eat on the way and out her shoes on at the door.

"Bye Mom, bye dad! See you later!!" She yelled as she ran out the door. When she arrived at the bridge, she saw that Naruto and Sasuke were once again already there. She stood opposite them and strapped her weapon pouch to her thigh. Knowing her sensei would be late, Sakura sat down against the bridge and ate her apple. Kakashi arrived thirty minutes later.

"You're late!" Naruto and Sakura yelled simultaneously, pointing at him.

"Well you see, I saw this black cat and..."

"Save it sensei. Why can't you just admit you're late?" Sakura said, standing up and brushing off the dirt.

"Yes, well... okay. Now, about the festivities. I'm guessing Naruto will be doing the eating contest?"

"Yeah! Dattebayo!" Naruto jumped up and punched the air with his fist. Everyone rolled their eyes and Sakura hit him on the head.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Baka."

"Okay, calm down you two. Sakura and Sasuke, you two are going to have to decide which of you are going to do the remaining events. You are both smart and you both have excellent stamina, so I'll let you decide." The two whispered it over for a minute before Sasuke stepped from Sakura.

"She is going to do the marathon while I am going to be doing the intelligence test. She can use her genjutsus, and she can use her chakra to run faster." He spoke.

Kakashi nodded, happy to see that they were getting along to an extent.

"That will work out perfectly. Now Naruto, do you have an empty stomach? I heard Choji eats quite a bit..."

"Hai! I didn't have breakfast so I'm starving! I'm soooo going to beat Choji, Believe it!"

* * *

"Welcome to our 25th annual Konoha ninja festivities. Today, our newest rookie nine, plus Maito Gai's team will be competing for the title of top team! First up on the list of competitions is the 25- mile marathon race. Would the four ninja competing please step forward to the starting line?"Tsunade yelled above the roar of the large crowd. Immediately, Sakura, Lee, Kiba, and Ino stepped forward and set themselves up in a line.

"Alright, now for the rules. Running ONLY. No hand-to-hand combat, no weapons, and no jutsu. There are multiple ANBU spread across the track. If they see you doing something, you will be immediately disqualified. First place takes ten points, second takes eight points, third takes six points, and fourth takes four points." Shizune yelled as Tsunade sat down in her chair behind the podium.

_'Shit, I can't use my genjutsus. I guess I have no choice. It's risky, but there's no other choice. I'll just have to hope that all that practice pays off.'_ Sakura glanced down the line to see Lee giving Gai his 'good guy pose'. Sakura just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the front.

"Okay, is everyone ready? Good. On your mark, get set, GO!!" And the four sped off. Lee was immediately in first with Sakura following close behind him. About ten miles in, She noticed that Lee was way ahead with Kiba trailing just behind her. Kiba sped ahead of her with a quick burst of speed.

"_**Why don't you try and use a genjutsu?"**_

_'I don't know... I really don't want to risk it.'_

"_**Just try!!" **_

_'Fine, here goes nothing...' _Sakura concentrated her chakra and yelled out the hand signs in her head. She stared at Kiba and he abruptly stopped running and started to stare off into space.

_'Yatta! It worked!" _Sakura sprinted past Kiba with a false look of confusion on her face. Through the next few miles, Sakura felt as if someone was watching her. Sakura assumed it was the ANBU.

"Look. She can even perform Justus without the use of her hands. She's perfect! I can't wait to obtain her and force her to be mine! We will take her at the award ceremony. I want to see how her other two teammates do. That Uchiha interests me." Orochimaru said quietly to Kabuto.

"Yes sir."

Realizing she only had three miles left, Sakura pushed a lot of chakra into her feet and ran as fast as she could to the end. Within a minute, Sakura was right behind Lee. They both ran through the finish line, one after the other, Lee came in first, Sakura second, Kiba in third ten minutes later, still dazed from the jutsu, and Ino came in fourth on a stretcher. She had passed out from exhaustion and Sakura's jutsu.

_Flashback...._

_About 17 miles in, Sakura noticed that Ino was starting to catch up to her. Ino had a smile of satisfaction on her face. Sakura could tell that despite the smile, Ino was exhausted. Just to fuel Ino's little happy moment, Sakura slowed down and feigned exhaustion. She began panting and fanning herself with her hand._

_"Ha! Everyone knows you're weak forehead girl. You can't even run 17 miles without getting tired. Oh well, see you at the finish line!" Smiling, Sakura easily caught up to Ino and ran along side her. Sakura quickly performed the hand signs in her head and stared at Ino. She started to slow down and looked like she was being chased by something. Ino had a look of pure terror on her face. Sakura just looked at Ino like she was stupid and continued on._

_End flashback.... _

Sakura gave a tired smile as she heard Tsunade declare her second place. She turned her tired smile to her sensei and her teammates.

"Excellent job Sakura. I'm assuming it was you who took Kiba and Ino out? How did you do it?" Kakashi asked as Tsunade announced that the next competition would be starting in twenty minutes.

"I used a genjutsu." They stared at her incredulously.

"But Shizune said that you couldn't." Naruto said, thoroughly confused.

"That would be because I did them without my hands. I just pictured and spoke the hand signs in my mind and stared at them. Somehow I managed to pull it off." Sakura said quietly. Sakura could tell she was extremely low on chakra. Naruto stared at her in Shock. Sasuke had his usual facade on, but you could tell that he was impressed.

"W-Wow Sakura-chan. You really are good!" Her vision began to get blurry and she tried to focus on who was speaking to her.

"A-Arigatou." She said, swaying a bit on her feet. Kakashi put a hand on her shoulder to steady her.

"Are you alright, Sakura?" She shook her head.

"No...chakra..."She muttered before her vision went black and she collapsed. Kakashi managed to catch her before she hit the ground.

"Naruto, you and Sasuke get over to the next competition. I'm going to go drop Sakura off at the Medic tent. I'll meet you there as soon as I drop her off." The two boys nodded and walked off in the other direction. He carried her carefully down the street to the tent.

"oh dear, what happened?" A nurse asked as soon as her entered the tent.

"Chakra exhaustion. She just passed out a minute ago." The nurse nodded and motioned for him to follow her.

"You can put her down on the bed." She said and pointed to a bed near the corner of the tent. He carried Sakura over and gingerly put her down on the bed. He could feel the nurse staring at him. Kakashi stood up straight and ran a gloved hand through his hair. He flashed the nurse a smile, though all she saw was the crinkle of his eye. He saw her blush.

"When do you expect her to wake up?" He asked lightly, gesturing a hand to Sakura.

"Oh, u-um, she should wake up in about thirty minutes. She'll be ready for the scavenger hunt." The nurse said quietly, embarrassed for stuttering. Kakashi nodded.

"When she wakes up, tell her to come find me." He heard her squeak out a response as he walked out of the tent. He found Naruto and Sasuke sitting in the grass with everyone, including the sensei. Kakashi sat down between Gai and Asuma.

"Congrats on your girl coming in Second. Is she okay? I saw you carrying her to the Medic tent." Asuma said lazily, stretching out on the grass.

"Yeah! Is Sakura-chan gonna be okay?" Naruto asked.

"She'll be just fine. She just lost a bit too much chakra."

"How'd she manage to do that? Or was that her who did all that damage to Ino and Kiba?" Gai asked in his usual, obnoxious voice.

"Yeah, it was her. Apparently she was able to do the impossible for a kid her age. She was able to perform two genjutsus without the use of hand signs. She did it all in her mind." Everyone except Naruto and Sasukes eyes grew wide and jaws drop in disbelief.

"I-Impossible!"

"H-How? She's way to young to be performing stuff like that!"

"Wow!" Those were some of the comments that came from the shocked group.

"She has superb chakra control. Don't know where or how she got it but she does. She's kinda like a mini Tsunade."Kakashi said, shaking his head at the thought of a mini Tsunade. One was more than enough. They all sat chatting about useless things when they heard Tsunade Make an announcement.

"The next event is going to start in five minutes. Will the four competing in the intelligence test come forward to the stage." They all got up and made their way to the stage. Shikamaru, Neji, Sasuke, and Shino walked up onto the stage and sat down. In the end, Sasuke won. The last question managed to stump everyone but Sasuke. I guess once having an overbearing father who drilled everything into your head helped.

"Great job Sasuke. You did really well." Kakashi said, patting a smug Sasuke on the back.

"Arigatou sensei."

"The next event will start in thirty-five minutes!" Shizune yelled.

* * *

**YAY! Hope you all enjoyed chapter 3! It was fun to write. haha**

**Until next time! **

**-fated blondie-  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**Okayyyy, sorry about the long delay. I know this chapter is short, but they'll get longer, I promisee!**

**Hopefully I can find the notebook this story is written in so I can update faster. I hate moving. .**

**Anywaysss, enjoy! ps, I don't own Naruto :3  
**

* * *

_recap_

"_The next event is going to start in five minutes. Will the four competing in the intelligence test come forward to the stage." They all got up and made their way to the stage. Shikamaru, Neji, Sasuke, and Shino walked up onto the stage and sat down. In the end, Sasuke won. The last question managed to stump everyone but Sasuke. I guess once having an overbearing father who drilled everything into your head helped._

"_Great job Sasuke. You did really well." Kakashi said, patting a smug Sasuke on the back._

"_Arigatou sensei." _

"_The next event will start in thirty-five minutes!" Shizune yelled._

_

* * *

_

Sakura woke up to the feeling of someone touching her forehead. She slowly opened her sea foam green eyes so they could adjust to the bright light.

"Ahh, You're finally awake Miss. Haruno. You passed out from Chakra exhaustion. You seem to be better now so you can leave now if you want. I suggest getting something to eat when you do leave. Kakashi-san asked me to tell you that you need to find him once you were awake." Sakura nodded and thanked the nurse. Sakura stood and stretched out her sore muscles. She saw Ino in one of the beds, still unconscious. She smirked as she walked by Ino and out of the tent. Sakura found her team sitting with everyone else under some trees. Naruto and Lee both noticed her and ran at her.

"Sakura-chan!" They both yelled. She side-stepped just in time and let them collide into each other. She sat down in the grass and leaned against a tree for support. She closed her eyes but was forced to reopen them when she felt everyone staring at her.

"What?" She asked, annoyed.

"They're still in shock about what you managed to do with your chakra." Sasuke said smoothly from next to her. Sakura just smiled.

"Believe me, I surprised myself. I didn't think I could actually pull it off. Guess I was wrong."

"Troublesome woman..." Shikamaru muttered. Sakura closed her eyes again and half-listened to the conversation going on around her. Sakura opened her eyes in time to see Kiba and Ino come up about ten minutes later. They both glared at Sakura before sitting down with their teammates. She just stared back with an innocent look on her face.

_'Wow, I didn't think they would get so pissed off about that. I'm sure they would have done the same thing...' _

As everyone was heading back for the next competition, Ino and Kiba pulled her aside.

"Look, I don't know what you did to win, but you better not try anything like that again. You're weak and you always will be. Just because you were able to pull of some stunt like that doesn't mean crap. You were just lucky, is all." Ino hissed in a low voice. Kiba just nodded. Sakura just stared off behind Ino, trying to ignore her. Ino smacked her across the face, bringing tears to her eyes.

"Don't ignore me! If your team beats any of the other teams, It will be your fault. So watch out." Ino said venomously. She slammed Sakura into the tree and motioned to Kiba that they were leaving. Sakura slumped down the tree and let the tears flow down her cheeks. Sakura pulled her knees op to her chest.

"I-I didn't even do anything wrong." She mumbled to herself through the silent sobs. She wanted to sit there forever but she knew she had to help her team win, no matter what threats Ino may throw her way.

"I-I'm in this to prove myself to everyone else. I c-can't let Ino get to me." She said quietly, trying to suppress her tears. Sakura heard someone coming. Thinking it was Ino again, Sakura quickly wiped away her tears and got ready to run.

"Sakura! What are you- are you okay?" Kakashi asked, noticing Sakura was about to run. He noticed that her eyes were all red and puffy from crying and quickly became concerned. "What happened? When I noticed you hadn't followed, I came looking for you. I saw Kiba and Ino pass by me on the way here. What did they do to you?" He asked, voice growing stern.

"N-Nothing. They just wanted to congratulate me." She lied. He saw right through it.

"You're lying to me. You wouldn't be crying if they had congratulated you. Sakura, what did they do?" Kakashi said softly, his voice calm and steady. She sighed uneasily. Sakura repeated what Ino said to her. She noticed his eyes, well eye, had grown wide.

"She threatened you?" She nodded slowly.

"B-But don't say anything. I-I don't want her to get even angrier." He stared at his student for a moment.

"Fine. But after wards, I will talk to Asuma about it. I'll let Kiba off the hook because he didn't do anything." Sakura smiled weakly. "Now come on, Naruto's match has already begun." The two walked back down into the village to find that Hinata and Tenten were finished while Choji and Naruto were still going at it. She went to sit with Sasuke while Kakashi went to go sit with the other Jonin sensei. She noticed that Ino was sitting beside Sasuke. Sighing, Sakura sat down on the other side of Sasuke. She heard Ino start talking louder about her but she ignored her and focused on Naruto and Choji.

"Ramen huh? Naruto's definitely going to win this one." Sakura muttered to herself.

"Most likely. The dobe eats ramen every second of his life. It's a wonder he's still alive." Sasuke replied from next to her. Surprised, Sakura glanced over to see him looking at her and not Ino. He was ignoring her. Ino looked extremely pissed off. Sakura inwardly grinned in satisfaction.

_**"Take that you bitch!" **_Inner Sakura yelled, pointing her finger at Ino.

"Sasuke-kun, don't ignore me! You should be talking to me, not that ugly bitch!." Ino whined, glaring at Sakura. Sasuke gave Ino the 'Uchiha look' and turned his attention back to Sakura. Sakura smiled and nodded.

"I agree. You'd think he'd get sick after a while. That stuff honestly can't be good for you..." Sasuke nodded in agreement. They watched the rest of the competition in comfortable silence. Well, if silence includes Ino's constant rambling about how Sasuke should be paying attention to her and that Sakura is a fat, ugly bitch... blah blah blah. Ino eventually gave up and sat down next to Shikamaru.

"Poor Shikamaru..." Sakura muttered. Ino was nearly on top of him. Sasuke shook his head.

"Whore." Was his response. Sakura let out a laugh and turned to see that the competition was finally over.

"Alright, So the winner, By a staggering twenty-five bowls, is Naruto!" Tsunade yelled. Naruto punched the air with his fist and gave the crowd a foxy grin. There was a great deal of booing coming from the civilians that made him frown. But when he noticed the others clapping and cheering for him, he brightened up again.

"Congratulations to all Genin! You all have done an excellent job. So far, In first is Kakashi's team with twenty-eight points. Second is Asuma's team with twenty points. Third is Gai's team with eighteen points and in fourth is Kurenai's team with fourteen points. Congratulations again and good luck. The scavenger hunt will begin in forty-five minutes."

"Sasuke-kun! Do you want to come with me to get something to eat?" Ino asked, trying to look sexy. Sakura thought she was going to puke.

"No." He said plainly and walked off with Sakura to find Kakashi and Naruto. Ino growled, turned on her heel, and stalked off. They found Kakashi and Naruto talking with Iruka and Genma.

"Hey. You two want to go get something to eat before the last competition? You must be really hungry." Kakashi said, trying to ignore Genmas direct stare at Sakura. They both nodded.

"Well then, lets go get some lunch!" Genma said lightly, speaking before Kakashi could answer.

"Naruto, we're going to get some lunch. Meet us back here in thirty-five minutes."

"Yep!"

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**I know it's kinda short, but as the story progresses, the chapters get much longer, i promise.**

**Hope you liked it. :3  
**


	5. Chapter 5

**Heyyyy, yeah I'm back. Sorry for the epic long wait. Took me a while to get my inspiration back. But I managed to get my ass in gear, and get back to writing my stories. Hopefully it sticks around! :3**

**Enjoyyyyyy  
**

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recap

"_Hey. You two want to go get something to eat before the last competition? You must be really hungry." Kakashi said, trying to ignore Genmas direct stare at Sakura. They both nodded._

"_Well then, lets go get some lunch!" Genma said lightly, speaking before Kakashi could answer._

"_Naruto, we're going to get some lunch. Meet us back here in thirty-five minutes."_

"_Yep!"_

* * *

The four of them (Iruka stayed with Naruto), headed to Ichiraku's to get some ramen.

"Are you sure there's even any Ramen left? I think between Naruto and Choji, they ate over a hundred bowls." Sakura said as they sat down. The owner, Teuchi, laughed at Sakura's comment.

"Oh, don't you worry. As long as Naruto's around, there will never be a short supply of Ramen. But if he does leave, we'll have a lot of ramen..." Everyone laughed and Teuchi took their orders. Sakura, who unfortunately had to sit next to Genma, sighed in annoyance. The last person she wanted to deal with was Mr. Pervert.

"So, congratulations on coming in second place. I heard you were able to perform two genjutsus without the use of your hands. That's a pretty amazing feat for a genin." Genma said, surprising Sakura with his more formal approach. She was expecting a pick-up line or something. Sakura just nodded slowly.

"Thanks. I surprised myself as well." Sakura thanked Teuchi for the ramen that he placed in front of her. She pulled apart her chopsticks and began eating. She could faintly hear everyone talking, but she was too caught up in her thoughts to hear any words.

_'I wonder what Ino's going to do to me. We're in first place. If we win, she's going to be super mad and take in out on me.'_

"_**Don't worry! You told Kakashi-sensei everything. She won't be able to touch you. Just try your hardest and win! You guys so deserve it."**_

_'You're right. I shouldn't be worrying about what Ino said. I'm stronger than that!'_

"_**Shannaro! Let's beat those sorry losers and prove to them that we aren't some weak little girl!"**_ Sakura felt a hand pass in front of her vision. Startled, Sakura gasped and fell backwards.

"Ow..." She pushed herself up off the ground and brushed herself off. Genma was laughing hysterically and Sasuke and Kakashi had looks of amusement adorning their faces. She could tell Kakashi was smiling because his one visible eye was crinkled. Sakura whacked Genma upside the head and sat down in the empty seat ext to Kakashi.

"Ow! You were spacing out! How the hell was I supposed to know you were gonna react like that?" Genma whined, his pace forming a pout. Sakura shook her fist at him and her resumed eating. Sakura ordered another bowl of ramen and engrossed herself in a conversation with Kakashi. When it arrived she ate it quickly because they had to leave.

They met up with Naruto in the place they mentioned and went to meet up with the other three teams.

"Okay, time for the final competition: The scavenger hunt! Each team has been given a scroll with the item you must retrieve written on it. You must find the item and bring it back before any other team does. Do not open the scroll until I say go. If you're ready, would the four teams please get into position?" They all lined up and got ready to go.

"Ready? GO!" All the teams except for Asuma's team and Kakashi's team. Sasuke calmly opened the scroll. Whispered sentences were exchanged between the three teammates. They all nodded simultaneously and dashed off.

"I've located our target. One mile northeast of the starting point. Meet me there." Sasukes voice crackled over the radio. Naruto and Sakura gave a quick response. They met Sasuke at the spot he had described and split up to search the area.

"Two armed chunnin on the western entrance of the building." Sasuke whispered.

"One where I am. There are some serious traps as well. Northern entrance is not looking so good." Naruto said quietly.

"None in the back. Only simple genin traps. Well take the southern entrance. Avoid battle." Sakura announced. They met up and quickly disabled the traps. Inside, they found their target surrounded by three chunnin.

"Guess there's no avoiding battle." Naruto said, pulling out a kunai. They ran at the chunnin and started fighting. Sakura threw some kunai at the chunnin she was fighting. He dodged them and came at her. She blacked his strong punches and landed a chakra-laced fist into his stomach. He was sent flying into the adjacent wall. She watched Naruto and Sasuke both land their final blows.

"Grab the... pig... and lets go!" Sasuke said, obviously annoyed at the object they had to retrieve. Sakura carefully picked up the pig.

"Kawaii!" Naruto nodded and Sasuke sighed angrily. He motioned for them to move. When they arrived, they presented the pig to Shizune and sat down in the tent they were escorted to. They sat there quietly drinking some water when they heard Tsunade call for the groups to come to the stage.

"Asuma's group came in first, retrieving the book in ten minutes." Cheers were heard throughout the crowd. "In second, Kakashi's team, retrieving the pig in thirteen minutes Fifty-eight seconds." More cheers. "In third, Kurenai's team, retrieving the dog in seventeen minutes seven seconds. And finally in fourth, Gai's team, retrieving the sword in twenty minutes three seconds. Good job everyone!" The crowd erupted in a loud applause.

"Give us a few minutes to add up the scores and then we will announce the winner." The teams got down off the stage and sat with their sensei. Sakura caught Ino looking at her with a triumphant smile plastered to her face. Sakura just ignored her and sat beside Naruto. When Tsunade returned, you could feel the tension in the air.

"Alright. Time for the moment you have all been waiting for."

"Get ready Kabuto. As soon as her team is on stage, we get her."

"Hai!"

"In third place, with twenty-four points, Kurenai's team!" Hinata, Shino, and Kiba walked up on stage and stood next to their sensei. The crowd cheered loudly for the team but stopped after a moment when Tsunade started to speak.

"Just a little longer. Are the back-up ninja ready?"

"Hai. They know to move on my signal." Orochimaru chuckled.

"Perfect." _'Soon, I will have one of Konoha's future strong ninja on my side. And there's nothing that they can do to stop me!'_

"In second place, with twenty eight points, Asuma's team! That means Kakashi's team wins with a total of thirty-six points!" The crowd erupted in a deafening roar of cheers and clapping. Sakura heard Ino swear loudly.

_'I am so dead.'_

"_**Yeah, but it was soooo worth it!"**_

_'Hell yeah it was!' _Sakura shook hands with Tsunade and Shizune.

"Congratulations to all of you. You all did an excellent job! I am very proud of you all for competing and trying your best."

"On my signal... NOW!" Kabuto gave the signal and a group of thirty Oto-nin flooded the area.

"What the hell?" People immediately started panicking. Sakura went into a fighting stance but froze instantly when she felt a kunai to her neck.

"O-Orochimaru." She heard Tsunade stutter out in fear. Sakura then realized it was Orochimaru that was holding the kunai to her neck. Sakura's eyes went wide and she felt a cold bead of sweat run down her back. She fought the urge to shiver when she heard Orochimaru chuckle.

"Let her go, snake bastard!" Naruto growled.

"I'm afraid I can't do that." Right before He motioned for Kabuto to stab her, he performed a series of quick hand signs that no one noticed, and replaced Sakura with another person that had a complex genjutsu placed so that they looked exactly like Sakura. Even in death, the body would retain all of Sakura's qualities and DNA. Sakura appeared in a tree feet away with the real Kabuto holding her in place.

The clone of Kabuto then plunged the katana into the Sakura clones stomach. He twisted the katana and yanked up, effectively cutting the clones stomach open. Orochimaru then proceeded to slice her neck open and dropped the dead girl to the ground.

"You bastard! Why did you do that?" Tsunade screamed, tears streaming down her usually calm face.

"Simple. I saw her as a future threat and I decided to eliminate her. Better to get rid of her now while she is still weak and useless."

"You fucking bastard. You killed Sakura-chan!" Naruto bellowed. His eyes started turning red and his fangs grew larger and more prominent. He lunged at Orochimaru only to have him dodge and throw Naruto in the other direction.

"We have completed what we came here for. Let's go Kabuto. Oh, and so sorry about the girl." He said, smirking sadistically. The pair then disappeared. Ino stared in shock at what had just happened. She glanced around to see faces mixed with shock, anger and sadness. She glanced out into the crowd to see jonin still fighting off the Oto-nin. She glanced back over to see that the usual stoic Sasuke and Kakashi had looks of pure hatred adorning their faces.

Sakura looked on as Orochimaru and Kabuto murdered her. She felt Orochimaru appear next to her. She attempted to back away but Kabuto's hold kept her in place. Orochimaru cupped her face with his hand and forced her to look at him.

"Don't be scared my little cherry blossom. I don't plan on hurting you... much. As long as you don't disobey me and do what either of us says, you will be fine. Got it?" Sakura nodded weakly, not trusting her vocal cords.

"Good. Then lets go Kabuto." Sakura took one last look at Konoha and her friends before disappearing to her own personal hell.

"SAKURAAAAAAAA!" Was the last inhumane cry she heard. She knew it was Naruto crying over her body.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't be stronger for you all."

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**Yay :3 Hope you liked it. It only took me like a year to do just one chapter. **

**Until next time!**

**-fated blondie-  
**


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